Article by Debbie Green

The Cayman Islands is a remarkably successful offshore jurisdiction, recognised as one of the top 10 international financial centres in the world, well known for its stable political and macroeconomic environment.The success of the Cayman Islands as an offshore jurisdiction is mainly attributed to the sound regulatory system that has been put in place and practise for many years. The banking sector conforms to the guidelines of the Basle Committee on Banking Supervision with the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority acting as the regulatory body performing such supervision.Indeed the International Monetary Fund (IMF) performed an assessment of the jurisdiction’s regulations surrounding the country’s banking, insurance and securities industries and anti-money laundering regime in 2003 and has recognised the Cayman Islands’ comprehensive regulatory and compliance frameworks.The final report from the IMF stated that “An extensive programme of legislative, rule and guideline development has introduced an increasingly effective system of regulation, both formalising earlier practices and introducing enhanced procedures.” Unsurprisingly, 47 of the 50 largest banks in the world are licensed here.Banks are licensed under the Banks and Trust Companies Law (2003) Revision. The two main categories of licences are Category A and B. Category A licences allow institutions to carry on business “within and outside of the Islands”; Category B licensees generally are prohibited from performing general banking facilities to persons resident in Cayman.There are a total of 22 Class A Banks and 392 Class B Banks on record with around US trillion on deposit, 80 per cent of which represent inter-bank bookings between onshore banks and their Cayman Islands counterparts, an extremely low risk profile for money laundering. Stringent Know Your Customer (KYC) regulation has led to qualified jurisdiction status being granted by the US Internal Revenue Service paving the way for institutions to become qualified intermediaries under the US Withholding Tax Rules.The Cayman Islands Stock Exchange was established in 1997 and has received recognition by the UK Inland Revenue which enables companies listed on the exchange to take advantage of the “quoted Eurobond exemption”, allowing interest to be paid on securities listed on the Exchange without the UK withholding tax reduction. The Exchange also has membership in The Intermarket Surveillance Group, IOSCO, the London Stock Exchange and the World Federation of Exchanges.The establishment of the Stock Exchange, which facilitates the listing of mutual funds and specialist debt securities among other issues, has contributed to the exceptional growth experienced in the fund industry and becoming the jurisdiction of choice for offshore hedge funds. As at 31 December, 2004 there were over 850 listed issues showing a combined market capitalisation of close to US billion, with a remarkable increase in listings for the year 2004.Cayman is a thriving centre for offshore banking and investment. With the strong regulatory environment, globally recognised accounting and law firms, the largest banks in the world, an abundance of qualified professionals, a standard of living envied by many and a destination that would satisfy even the most discerning of travellers, it is no wonder it has become the success story it is today.

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Article by Nicole Anderson

The amount of people coming forward to claim unclaimed money has not increased. This is in spite of the great initiatives the government has been taking to educate the public about these larges sums of money. Unclaimed money or property includes lost bank accounts, pay checks not cashed, safety deposits and gift certificates. Unclaimed money is not always in the form of cash; it can also be in the form of mutual funds, stocks, and safe deposit boxes.

Unclaimed property comes from different sources, such as credit unions, banks, corporations, insurance agencies, retailers and different governmental agencies located in that state. It is the responsibility of the State Treasuries to take care of the found money and assist people, who are trying to find unclaimed money.

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Article by David Augustine

Investing income mutual funds is the best way to make investments due to the fact this allows you to produce a passive source of income and you did not do anything bodily or tiring.

Moolah mutual money is the method of shopping for shares by putting your purchase to a supervisor who will be the one to make investments your bucks to companies and this strategy has countless positive aspects.

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Article by Clelland Green

It’s pretty much a given that when it comes to health care the premiums will keep going up.

With health care premiums on their way up just about every year, it should come as no surprise that a lot of companies are starting to offer health savings accounts as a benefit for working. These accounts are beginning to replace PPOs and HMOs.The most attractive thing about health savings accounts is the fact that they are tax free when linked to an insurance policy with a high deductible; usually about ,250 for a single person and ,500 for a family. When you hit the deductible you get comprehensive coverage. Many people are finding that they like this type of arrangement.Since it’s a bit of a burden to handle some of the upfront out-of-pocket expenses, you have the option of handing over (pre-tax of course) anywhere up to ,650 for a single person and up to ,250 for a family. All you need to do is tuck that away into a health savings account. Remember as well that when you take money out of a health savings account it is also tax free just so long as the money is used for medical expenses. Not too many people seem to realize that any money that isn’t spent in the health savings account will roll over automatically year after year. That money can then either earn interest or you can invest it into participating mutual funds. This would kick up your returns and, with some luck and smart investing, you could find yourself sitting on a tax free bundle of cash for health care costs.Here is another tip for employers. They are able to save between 25 to 30 percent on health premiums just by the simple expediency of switching to health savings accounts. That would mean lower premiums for workers. Really, both employers and workers get a good deal when they switch to health savings accounts. However, some companies are finding it hard to sell the concept. For example, some health care plans have a very low deductible of about 0. It’s pretty hard to sell a worker on switching to a plan with a much higher deductible. Furthermore, those who have been used to having a co-pay when they visit a doctor are rather put out by having to pay the whole amount up-front.Another barrier to companies offering health savings accounts is the perception that they aren’t for the average Joe Blow worker and are instead for those who are in good health and have lots of money. Over time these objections have proven to be invalid and many workers are now reaping the advantages of health savings accounts. Many industry pundits think these accounts will be the wave of the future, as they are certainly attractive options.

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Article by Porter Green

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They are. Shoes can do. Retailers gain better rich. amount acceptance (although it is partly because the boots are so acceptable, so that adequate, but because they acquire membership has affected two sets is the best way to use box Discount MBT shoes, you can get, which is a plentiful, the pants, boots sterile, which is to blow off pastes (or draft jeans, if the VAT, and disclosure to plan. backcountry Cossack (abnormally alternation after today. At (MBT shoes to get used to, which is an annual women are fashionable, believable MBT Shoes and Cossack single feed anxiety, become fashionable man wants two accumulations, and to acquire an acceptance of the wader look silly ad through alternating affiliate boots and feet to ensure the woman as breathing toes, and those who buy for this pair of shoes – a troublesome work outdoors, the affidavit, these rights and socks.

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Article by Tracey Ryniec

Alternative energy, which is defined as solar, wind, biofuels and other energy that is not fossil fuels, is hot right. But now that alternative energy has become a glamour sector, and investors have piled in, many of the companies have seen their shares rise sharply.Some of the solar stocks, for instance, as the stocks have moved higher, are now trading with sky high price-to-earnings ratios.First Solar Inc. (FSLR), for example, is a fast growing solar company, where analysts expect year-over-year earnings growth of 138.90%. It’s also a Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stock. But the stock is far from a value pick, as it trades at a whopping 47.9x forward earnings. Are there any alternative energy companies with the same strong fundamentals as First Solar, but that are trading at a discount to the sector?Believe it or not, value does exist. Even with the big run-up in the sector, I still found three alternative energy companies with value fundamentals which are also Zacks Rank #1 or #2 stocks.Three Stocks with Strong Value FundamentalsReneSola, Ltd (SOL) is a Chinese solar wafer manufacturer. It is a Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stock. The company has beaten Wall Street estimates 2 out of the last 4 quarters by an average of 19.63%. It also has strong value fundamentals. Its forward P/E is 9.62 and its price-to-book (P/B) is 2.32. Read the June 28 Zacks Analyst Research Report on ReneSola.Gushan Environmental Energy Ltd. (GU) is a Chinese producer of biodiesel and related products. It is also a Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stock. The company has surprised on estimates the last 2 quarters by an average of 5.28%.GU has solid value characteristics. It trades at 9.4x forward earnings and has a P/B of 2.57. Read the July 7 Zacks Analyst Research Report on Gushan Environmental Energy.Aventine Renewable Energy, Inc. (AVR) is an Illinois-based producer of ethanol and related by-products. It is a Zacks #2 Rank (Buy) stock. It has beaten Wall Street estimates 3 out of the last 4 quarters by 288.89%. AVR, like the other two companies, also has solid value fundamentals. It trades at 13.4x forward earnings and its P/B is only 0.79. Read the Aug 11 Zacks Analyst Research Report on Aventine Renewable Energy.

It Pays To Look AroundYou may have to dig a little deeper to find value stocks in the alternative energy sector. A good resource to begin your search, which I used to find some of the companies in this article, is the Zacks #1 Rank list which will give you ideas in the sector and then you can expand your search from there.Value exists even in the glamour investing sectors like alternative energy. It’s just not always staring you right in the face.

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Question by Smitty Carmichael: What happened to UMESX mutual fund the other day?
Just curious if anyone has any reason why Excelsior Energy & Nat Resources mutual fund (UMESX) took a nosedive (20% +) on Tuesday. It seems that the underlying funds did fine that day, but not the fund itself. Thanks
so the amount of loss will be reimbursed as a dividend? This happened yet. So far it just looks like a loss

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